It should come as no surprise to fans of Lisa Lampanelli that she doesn’t care if you come to her show at 7:30 p.m. next Thursday at the Community Arts Center, 220 W. Fourth St.
And it certainly shouldn’t make you drop your jaw in shock that she doesn’t want to autograph your lousy ticket, either. (She will, however, be happy to sign the T-shirt that your fork over your hard-earned cash for at the show.)
Why? Because the insult comedian couldn’t care less about what her audience thinks and said that people know exactly what they’re getting into when they choose to set themselves up for her crude humor by attending one of her hour-long acts. And it’s precisely why her shows are so popular.
“Feel free to stay at home and watch ‘The Biggest Loser.’ But if you want to laugh at a funny fat person, come and see me,” she said. “I’ve never bent over for anyone — if you don’t have a sense of humor, please do not come; if you cannot laugh at yourself and others, do not come.”
Lampanelli was 30 years old when she got into the business of stand-up comedy and said it took “about 15 years to start making something more than migrant workers make.”
“I was a journalist and got sick of it. I thought, ‘there’s got to be a way to use the c-word and make a lot of money’ and I figured out how. I started open mics.”
Nerves are not an issue for this “Queen of Mean,” throwing digs at the often melting pot crowds for being black, gay, Jewish and even the elderly.
“Hell no, are you kidding me? When you know it’s right, you’re never nervous. I’m nervous when I’m doing something that I’m not right for ... comedy shows? That’s nothing. I’ve never been nervous for a live performance.”
Lampanelli said she never feels bad for singling someone out for being different because if they’re dumb enough to buy tickets, they should be thick-skinned enough to take what she can dish out. In fact, she said, she often gets reassurance that people appreciate her edgy humor.
“There was a crippled Arab in the front row the other night — a double whammy — and you can bet I took advantage of it. But they wrote me a letter later and said it was the funniest night they’d had. It’s their own fault, you know. Anything I say is with a good heart and if you get hurt, that’s on you — see a therapist. I only feel bad when they’re too cheap to buy T-shirts.”
Part of the reason the ridicule in Lampanelli’s shows seems so personal is because it is.
“I ad-lib a lot because that is writing,” she said. “Writing on stage is how most comics write. You go back and listen to it, see what comes out and what it needs and you make it enduringly funny with more tags and things.”
Touring, however, is something Lampanelli said she knows nothing about.
“It’s not like I’m Cinderella (she wasn’t talking about the princess). I don’t get a big, tour for six months and take off the rest of the year. It’s your whole life, other than working on a TV show, doing the “Tonight Show” or “Howard Stern.” The road is constantly what we do — every Friday and Saturday night for the rest of my life — and maybe throw in a Thursday to make me feel bad for myself.”
Tickets are $34.75 and are available by calling the Community Center Box Office at 326-2424.
